New Zealand to Tahiti (5.9.19 – 5.29.29) We are back from our sailing training voyage from New Zealand to Tahiti with a stop at Rurutu! We learned a ton about open ocean sailing and then decompressed in French Polynesia for a few days.
Our route
The sailing started out easy (motoring) and got tougher as the days clicked by. The sail from Rurutu to Tahiti was particularly challenging with consistent 35 knot winds and 15 foot seas with sideways rain. There were a couple of times during Linda’s watch where a wave broke on the boat and filled the cockpit. It’s a good thing we had the wash boards in the companionway. We learned that long ocean passages in heavy seas going upwind is not what we want to do. We also learned that having a great crew on board makes the voyage. Clink on this link to see the details of the trip. http://www.mahina.com/leg19/1.html#itinerary
Linda reefing, Bob helming 
A focused sailor 
A happy sailor 
Our only fish the whole trip
It wasn’t all tough sailing 
The hearty crew in Rurutu
Our guide’s husband dropped off a bit of fruit:) 
Harvesting papayas on the roadside with our guide
The view from the masthead 
John and Amanda, the source of endless knowledge
Tahiti (5.29.29) We stayed in a great hotel (Manava Suites) with our new friends, the Grants, and had a yummy dinner at the Blue Banana down the road. As we waded in the infinity pool we watched John and Amanda leave the harbor headed to Huahine. We didn’t realize the day we planned to take the ferry to Moorea was a holiday and there was only one ferry that day. It was dumb luck that we got to the ferry in time. We met Harry (a mega yacht 1st mate) and Morgan (a travel blogger) on the ride to Moorea.
Our new friends, Jo and David Grant
Moorea (5.30.39 – 5.31.19) We loved the Intercontinental hotel partially because we were upgraded to a hut on the lagoon. Our big adventure was hiking up the Mt. Rotui ridge. We got lucky with the weather. Any rain and it would have been a treacherous hike. We also took paddle boards out to the sand bar and snorkeled with the sting rays and black tipped sharks. We thought it was interesting that chickens were roaming free in the open air restaurant during breakfast.
The hike up Mt. Rotui
Our bungalow by the lagoon 
Chickens with (not for) breakfast
Bora Bora (6.1.19) The Sofitel hotel we booked was under renovation so we stayed at the sister hotel on their private island. This is a place for couples on their honeymoons so we were entertained by the couples walking off to their private dinners on the beach. We were good with the normal restaurant:) We kayaked around the small island which had some good snorkeling.
Bora Bora snorkeling
The private island 
Our tree hut
Huahine (6.2.19 – 6.3.19) We had our first dive here after getting re-certified in April. Annie from Mahana Dive did a great job making us feel comfortable even though we were diving with gray sharks. We took a hotel kayak out around the boats anchored near the hotel and met Adam and Adam on their boat Langoust. We enjoyed learning about their sailing adventures. They are both architects and they talked about having Mark (our youngest son) come to New Zealand to intern at their firm.
Annie and Robert our dive instructors 
Super chill dive shop
Kayaking to the boats in the harbor 
Adam and Adam – super cool architects
Back to Tahiti to fly home (6.4.19) We met up with Harry again at the airport and learned that he met a woman that wants to build bungalows on her land and give one to him if he builds them. He is planning to head back to Moorea in December with a bunch of tools. It’s interesting the different paths people take through life.
A stop in San Francisco (6.5.19) We stopped in San Fran to visit with Mitch and Erin for an evening. It was good to catch up in person after being off the grid for about a month.
Sushi with Mitch and Erin
SV Tiger Lily 